Residents from across Missouri went to the state Capitol on Wednesday, hoping to convince Gov. Mike Parson to call a special session to pass legislation that would keep Missourians from having to comply with a COVID-19 vaccination mandate announced last week by President Joe Biden.
Nathan Rorebeck, of Trenton, was among those at the rally. He said they are pushing back against any federal mandates, but in particular the vaccine mandate.
The Associated Press reported the mandate calls for all employers with more than 100 employees to require those workers to be vaccinated or tested for the virus weekly, affecting about 80 million Americans. And the roughly 17 million workers at health facilities that receive federal Medicare or Medicaid funds also would have to be fully vaccinated.
"We feel this is an overreach by the federal government because they are threatening health care institutions with pulling Medicare and Medicaid funding and not letting them receive that," Rorebeck said. "By doing that, it forces health care providers to mandate their employees get the vaccines."
Rorebeck said state lawmakers have passed legislation that says no governmental employees can be mandated to get the vaccine, but they need to include those workers in private industry, too.
"That was because of concerns over insurance and pushing a law that would tell a private company what they can and cannot do," Rorebeck said. "If they did want to mandate their employees, they should have the right to do that, which I don't disagree with that part, entirely."
Rorebeck said he and many of those at the rally were not opposed to all vaccinations, noting he and others have been vaccinated for many childhood diseases. But he said he still questions the science behind the COVID-19 vaccines being offered.
"You should be left to do your own research and decide for yourself if it's the right thing for you and your family to do," Rorebeck said.
After Biden's mandate came out Sept. 9, Parson issued a statement his administration would "reject the Biden Administration's attempt to enforce an unconstitutional, federal vaccine mandate for Missourians and private businesses."
Parsons also said his staff was working with the Missouri General Assembly and the Attorney General's Office to align resources for a pending legal fight.
One of the speakers at Wednesday's rally in the Capitol Rotunda was Sen. Bill Eigel, R-St. Charles. He told the crowd he hoped Parson would sign legislation to prevent a person from being told what they have to put into their body.
"We don't work for Joe Biden," Eigel said. "You don't have to do what Joe Biden tells you to do. You're Americans, and you should make your own decisions."
Roreback added: "Time is of the essence because some people have already quit their jobs because of the mandate. Some people have decided there's no way they can avoid taking the shots so they went ahead and did it."
The Associated Press contributed information in this story